Mother's Day is Sunday. Traditionally, it is a day to honor and respect all that mothers do and sacrifice for the sake of their children. And while this day is important, special, and necessary, we can't help but wonder what our country would be like if we celebrated mothers every day. If mothers and babies were held in the highest regard, as they should be, each and every day of the year, think about the lives that could be spared. Think about the heartache that would not come about because a mother chose to abort her child. That would truly be a celebration.

In this era of motherhood by choice, we confront an oddity that I could never have imagined would occur in my lifetime. It becomes much more evident at this special time of year when we honor our mothers and express our sincere appreciation for the sacrifices they made for us during our childhood and beyond.

I think about the young Canadian fellow who appreciated his mother's nurturing care for him so much that he saved his money for years and was finally able to present her with a check to pay off her mortgage. Fortunately for all of us, he caught the touching moment on video. To date, nearly two million people have viewed this special celebration of motherhood. Bravo Aba!

We can relate to this one son's expression of love for his mother in many ways, especially when put in the context of the profound words Pope John Paul II wrote in the Gospel of Life: "A mother welcomes and carries in herself another human being, enabling it to grow inside her, giving it room, respecting it in its otherness. Women first learn and then teach others that human relations are authentic if they are open to accepting the other person: A person

who is recognized and loved because of the dignity which comes from being a person and not from other considerations, such as usefulness, strength, intelligence, beauty or health."

In those few words we gain a glimpse into what motherhood should mean versus what it has come to in our age. Sadly, today, millions of mothers approach Mother's Day with emptiness, sadness, and anxiety. The reason will be that rather than welcoming and carrying her baby, she chose to kill him. No, she probably did not commit this act personally, but rather she facilitated it at the hands of an abortionist, a nurse practitioner, or maybe even a midwife.

In the topsy-turvy world of abortion-on-demand, there is nothing sacred about motherhood, which is why this coming Sunday will be either a celebration of love or a dreaded day of guilt and sorrow.

But it does not have to be that way. There is hope, there is a light at the end of the tunnel, and there is every reason to believe that this bleak period in history can be reversed.

How is that? Simple!

Americans must finally admit that the decriminalization of abortion was among the most tragic errors ever perpetrated on mankind by human judges with no apparent grounding in the natural law.

Our fellow citizens must see the preborn child, from his very first moment, as a member of the human family – not a "problem" in need of a solution.

Each of us can use our talent, our confidence in truth, and our personal admiration for the sacrifices of our own mothers to make this happen. It is not rocket science; it is as simple as teaching that one plus one equals two.

This Mother's Day make a promise to your mom, wherever she is, that you will show your love for her by doing more to help others understand what abortion does to a mother and to her preborn child. We can all do something; choosing to do nothing is simply not an option.

Finally, to my own mother I say, "Happy Mother's Day, Mom, I love you. I thank God for you. You have always been my hero. God rest your soul."

Judie Brown

Judie Brown is president and co-founder of American Life League, the nation's largest grassroots pro-life educational organization... (more)

Judie Brown is president and co-founder of American Life League, the nation's largest grassroots pro-life educational organization.

She has served three terms as a member of the Pontifical Academy for Life in Rome. Daily Catholic cited her as one of the top 100 Catholics of the 20th century.

Judie has appeared on 20/20, 60 Minutes, Mother Angelica Live, The O'Reilly Factor, Good Morning America, Today, Oprah, and Larry King Live, as well as hundreds of other television and radio talk shows. Her comments regularly appear in major print media nationwide, and she has written numerous editorial pieces for magazines and newspapers, including The Washington Post and USA Today.

Judie is married to Paul A. Brown, and they have three children and nine grandchildren. She and her husband have been involved in the pro-life movement since 1969.